WE have seen significant progress in the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program, which is an offshoot of President Rodrigo Duterte's campaign promise to improve the income tax system and make it progressive.

Republic Act 10963 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train) became effective on January 1, 2018 and lowered income tax rates for lower or middle income earning individual taxpayers. The Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (Create) or Republic Act 11534 was passed in March 2021 and lowered the regular corporate income tax rate from 30 percent to 25 percent (or 20 percent for those with total assets not exceeding P100 million and with net taxable income not exceeding P5 million) and rationalized and revised the tax incentives regime to make it performance-based, targeted, time-bound and transparent.